There was a conference in Havana, and in the words of our very special colleague, Tom Blanton from the National Security Archive, it was "a supernova." The learning began when the participants read the conference sign: "Conferencia tripartita sobre las crisis de octobre de 1962." It's not "the Cuban missile crisis;" it's not "the Caribbean crisis;" it's "the October crisis" -- to indicate that, to the Cubans, this was merely one of many crises with the North Americans. President Fidel Castro, pictured here in the middle, participated in all conference sessions.

This is the set up of the conference. The room is in the conference facility that the Cubans built for the "Non-Aligned Summit" that they hosted in 1979. (The October 2002 conference on the 40th anniversary of the crisis will be held in this very same room.)

After the first session, there was a coffee break, during which Robert McNamara (Kennedy's Secretary of Defense during the crisis and the leader of the US delegation to the conference) and President Fidel Castro first met informally.

A riveting exchange between McNamara and Castro was sparked by an astounding revelation by Russian General Anatoly Gribkov: that the Russian military in Cuba during the crisis was equipped with tactical nuclear weapons and had the authority to use them in the case of a US land invasion of Cuba.

After hearing this, McNamara asked Castro two questions: "a) Were you aware of the Soviet deployment of tactical nuclear weapons and plans for their use; and b) What was your interpretation or expectation of the possible effect on Cuba? How did you think the US would respond, and what might the implications have been for your nation and the world?"

Castro's response: "Now we started from the assumption that if there was an invasion of Cuba, nuclear war would erupt. We were certain of that ... we would be forced to pay the price, that we would disappear ... Would I have been ready to use nuclear weapons. Yes, I would have agreed to the use of nuclear weapons. ... I would have agreed, in the event of the invasion you are talking about, with the use of tactical nuclear weapons. ... If Mr. McNamara or Mr. Kennedy had been in our place, and had their country been invaded, or their country was going to be occupied ... I believe they would have used tactical nuclear weapons."

After the conclusion of the conference, President Castro hosted a reception for all conference participants and observers at the Palace of the Revolution. Here, something almost as remarkable as the conference happened, and was captured on film: a total role reversal, with President Castro listening to Jim Blight's instructions!

Following the conference, a few of the US organizers stayed an extra day in Havana, to both celebrate and recover from the conference. The celebration took place at La Bodegita del Medio -- a restaurant in Old Havana. At La Bodegita, there is a tradition that dates back to the 1930's of patrons writing on the walls. Here, Jorge Pollo -- the can-do, behind the scenes person on the Cuban side -- is writing "Blight" on the wall, with a missile as the 'i."

Pollo, a battle-tested insider -- also signed for "Romulo," using hearts for the "o's." So, a word of introduction about "Romulo" is needed. During the three years between the conference in Moscow and the conference in Havana, Jim and janet and their colleagues made many trips to Havana. Often, the negotiations were "testy." None of us remembers how it started, but there soon developed the practice of bringing "Romulo" to these negotiations. "Romulo" is a stuffed animal -- a Venezuelan mountain bear. We named him "Romulo Bear-en-court," after Romulo Betancourt, the President of Venezuela in the early 60's who was a friend of the Kennedy Administration and the target of leftist revolutionaries (supported by the Cubans). "Romulo" -- cute and cuddly -- was a way for us to talk with the Cubans about difficult topics, without either side getting carried away with rhetoric. Pollo especially -- and quite surprisingly -- became a fan of "Romulo."

Here, at La Bodegita, with David Lewis, and Jim and janet, is Jorge Pollo with Romulo.

We wanted to find another "Romulo" for Pollo, and searched high and low to find another one ... almost. This one, which we named "Remo" is less sweet, and more of a hit-man (in the stuffed animal kingdom). "Remo" was perfect for Pollo. Here he is with both "Romulo" and "Remo."